Hero Talk
by The Real Nowhere-Man
Summary: A collection of unrelated drabbles featuring random interactions between BtVs characters and Smallville characters. Feel free to send in ideas for interactions you'd like to see and maybe I'll write them. Rating for individual pieces will differ.
1. Close Encounters

**Disclaimer:** I don't own _Smallville, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, _or_ Angel_, or any of the characters.

**Opening Note:** "Hero Talk" is a series of short drabbles, all mostly unrelated, focusing on random interactions between characters in the Buffyverse and the _Smallville _'verse. It's really just a place for me to play around and experiment with different things in writing, and also to write out short scenes that I thought of without needing to create a whole long story behind it. Some will contain romance, some won't, and you may see a scene here appear in another of my stories (sometimes they tend to have themes in common). Some of them might even become full stories.

Also, feel free to suggest an interaction you'd like me to write, and I'll think about it.

Also many many thanks to RevDorothyL for helping me by doing the BETA thing.

**Now, moving on:**

_I can tell this is just going to be one of those days, _thought Clark Kent -- super-powered alien refugee from the planet Krypton, A.K.A. the Red-Blue Blur (or more correctly, "The Blur", since he had swapped his attire to all black) -- as he looked at the young brunette woman he had pulled out of the path of a speeding car moments ago.

Clark thought nothing of it at the time: another day, another save, as it were. He had pulled her out of traffic and super-sped away. He almost instantly became aware of the pressure of the girl's hand on his wrist and, when he had looked back, he had seen her trailing out behind him. The woman, in her terror, must have grabbed onto him reflexively.

Clark knew he couldn't stop here in the middle of this crowded street, and if she let go at the speed they were moving she would probably be killed. So Clark ran up to a rooftop and stopped, holding the girl so the sudden deceleration wouldn't send her flying off the building. He was about to take off again, but she still hadn't let go of him.

"Um...excuse me, Miss...I'm going to need you to let go." Clark was silenced when the woman held up a finger to indicate that he should wait for her to catch her breath.

"Ah...ah...god...that...hah!" she gasped laboriously for a few more seconds before she looked up at Clark, at which point her breath stopped again for several seconds.

"Wow," she said. "Wasn't expecting you to be so handsome."

The compliment painted Clark's face red, and he tried to shake off his embarrassment.

"Thank you, but I really need to go, Miss..."

"Summers, Dawn Summers."

"...right. Look, Miss Summers - "

"Dawn!" she insisted.

"Dawn," Clark corrected himself, "I kind of need to get back to work, so if you'd be so kind... ?" He lifted his arm, and her own arm -- still attached to his by way of her grip -- rose with it.

"Oh, yeah...sorry about that. But I did it because I need to talk to you. If I let go of your hand, promise you won't run away?"

Clark nodded and she let go.

"So," she began, "you're it, huh? The infamous 'Red-Blue Blur'. I kind of like the new look, though...well, actually, since I have no clue what the other look _looked_ like I guess I can't talk; I just kind of said that 'cause, you know, black usually looks good on people -- it's slimming and all that, though not everyone can pull it off, but you can, of course. I mean, you look good...um, I'll shut up now."

Clark's mouth was slightly open in astonishment. That girl hadn't taken a single breath.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, hoping her super-speed trip hadn't caused any damage, possibly to her brain.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine, just a bit of a babbler." Dawn turned away from him, mortified. This mission was definitely _not_ going according to plan. She was already nervous that she was meeting THE Metropolis Blur. She had met hero types before, but this guy was practically a celebrity. The fact that he was also extremely cute did nothing to calm her nerves. Although, in retrospect, it was probably a good thing the Scoobies picked her for this mission instead of Faith as they originally intended. Almost getting run over by a car hadn't been part of the plan, but it all seemed to have worked out okay in the end.

_Okay, Dawn, focus. This is your first solo mission, All your begging and groveling to Buffy _-- and going behind her back to Willow, not that Dawn would ever admit to that --_has finally paid off. Time to show them what you're made of... .Wow, he has really blue eyes. I don't think I've ever even seen a shade of blue like that - No, focus!_

"What is it you need to talk to me about, Miss Su - Dawn?"

"Oh, right. Okay, so...I'm here representing the Watchers Council. Do you know who they are?"

Clark nodded. He wasn't a big fan of the mystic community (a few bad experiences), but he didn't ignore it. Zatanna and some of his other comrades who dealt with the occult kept him apprised of the various goings on of the magical world.

"Oh, you do? Okay, good....that makes my job much easier."

"What job is that?"

"I'm here to offer you...um, how can I put this? An olive branch? No, that's not it...an alliance? No, too Middle Earth...You know what, forget it! I'm here because you're a hero, and we're heroes, and together we can probably help each other be all heroic!"

There was a pause which would have been silent if it weren't for the fact that silence doesn't exist in Metropolis.

"So, what exactly are you asking for?" Clark asked.

"In summation? Can I have your number?"

"Oh..."

"Yeah, sorry, an inappropriate sense of humor is kind of part of the whole package when dealing with Slayers and New Watchers. We just think that maybe it would be best for everyone if we knew how to get in touch...you know, just in case."

Clark stopped to consider this. The girl didn't seem to be lying, and with his enhanced senses, Clark could usually spot a lie on the other side of the continent. He himself had been something of a lone wolf most of his life, avoiding really getting into the hero business until the past two years. However, she did have a point, and Clark felt strangely honored that the Watchers Council, who Zatanna had told him had been pretty much on top of protecting the world since the dawn of humanity, were seeking him out. He would need to be careful, still; being cautious never hurt.

"Before I make any decisions, I'll need to speak to the other members of my team," Clark finally responded. He noticed Dawn's eyes widen in response. She hadn't known he had a team.

"Yeah, sure, the more the merrier...Um, so how about we meet up and discuss this, say tomorrow at eight o'clock? I hear there's a really nice Italian restaurant on the corner of 107th street and 57th avenue."

Clark's eyebrows scrunched together briefly in concentration. "That's a pizza place."

"Hey, I'm a simple girl."

Clark chuckled at her. "Okay, sounds good."

"Great...you're buying!"

Before Clark could respond, Dawn had removed a small glass vial from her pocket and thrown it on the floor where it broke and created a burst of smoke. Clark quickly cleared it with a bit of super-breath, but Dawn had gone.

_Looks like I'm about to meet some very interesting people._

_**fin**_

**Special sneak peek: ** In the next chapter, titled, "To be a Hero", the reborn Old One Illyria meets a being in the human city of Metropolis with powers rivaling her own which he uses to protect its citizens. Curious, she confronts this so-called "Blur" on why he does what he does.


	2. To Be a Hero

**Author's note: **Sorry everyone, about the lack of activity. But I have been busy, school and all, even during the summer when I thought I'd have time! But I have recently been watching Buffy/Angel re-runs and Smallville's new season to psych myself up! Hopefully you'll see a production increase.

On an unrelated note, I've also been reading the _Buffy_ comic books, and even the _Superman: Earth One,_ both of which are AWESOME! Seriously, those people who are fans of Buffy are seriously mistaken in believing that the story has ended: it has simply changed media format. Any fan of the show MUST READ THE COMICS! Do it now, go! After you finish with this fic...

**To Be a Hero**

Illyria overlooked the sea of lights that was the human city of Metropolis. It did not impress her, she had traveled worlds and seen wonders none of those simpering apes could imagine. This city was nothing in the scheme of things, a pile of rubble just waiting to happen. A sudden rush of air interrupted her musings and she smirked. The smirk vanished as soon as she realized it had been involuntary. She was starting to become more in tune with her vessel, reacting reflexively in human ways. She shook the thought off; she was Illyria, the great Demon-King, her magnificence was in no way diminished by the inferior form she currently inhabited.

She could sense him behind her, but did not turn around, waiting for him to speak first.

"You called?"

She had indeed. A being who could run all over the city to stop crimes had to have good senses, she had figured. So she climbed one of the many towers in the city and had simply called out to him.

"Yes, I did."

"You're not human."

"Well, so long as we're stating the obvious, neither are you."

She turned to face him at last and was surprised by how human he looked. It was his true face, too - she could sense no magic or illusion.

"What do you want?" The Blur demanded, expecting a fight.

"Take care in the tone you use to address me, _boy_!" she warned. "I have not come here to fight you, but if you disrespect me again, a fight you shall have."

There was a moment's pause before he spoke again. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend." Illyria snorted, another disgustingly human reaction - she really had to watch out for those.

"You would've made a terrible demon lord, You never humble yourself before another demon."

"Demon?"

"Isn't that what you are? I figured you might not be, no demon I can think of would devote himself to protecting citizens of this filthy city. Half-demon perhaps? Or something new..."

"What I am isn't important. Who are you and what is it that you want?"

"My name is Illyria, and once I was a great ruler in this world."

"I've never heard of you."

"I would not have expected you to. As to why I'm here, whimsy."

"Whimsy?"

"Yes, I want to know why you're doing this."

The Blur's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Doing what?"

Illyria turned again to look out over the city. Her senses had deadened considerably since her power had been siphoned. In a way she was glad: she would no longer have to feel the stink of humanity pressing so close against her. But she could still remember some of it, and even now, could touch a tendril of what lay on the streets below.

"Why does a being of your power defend these insects?"

"They aren't insects, they are human beings-"

"To me it's the same thing! These creatures have no power; only a fool wastes his on the weak."

"It is for exactly that reason that I protect them."

"How nauseating."

Illyria once again turned away from the Blur, staring out at the city. She heard footsteps as he came to stand beside her, but she refused to acknowledge him.

"What about you, Illyria? What do you amount to?"

Illyria whirled on him, but he caught her fist in his own and she railed against the circumstances that had left her here in this tiny shell, depleted of her former powers.

"How dare you! I once ruled over a thousand worlds!"

"There are billions in this galaxy alone," he replied.

"I have lived for millions of your years!"

"To the sun, you are just a child throwing a tantrum."

Illyria screamed in rage and swung again, but he was gone in a gust of wind and several feet away now.

"Importance, power, size - these things are all relative, Illyria. How hard have you had to fight?" he asked.

Illyria paused, unsure of what he meant, indignation fueling a desire not to answer him, simply to be impudent. Not at all unlike the child he had accused her of being moments ago. Illyria released her anger, telling herself she was quite above it.

"I have never had to fight, so great was my power that all things that opposed me fell with ease!"

"Then what could you possibly know of these people?" The Blur had walked back to the edge of the building's roof and gazed upon the city, an invisible gesture for her to do the same.

"All those people do out there is struggle. You claim that they are insignificant, that they have no power. Yet even though they are so weak, they struggle with everything they have. Their lives are a constant battle, and look at all they have accomplished. All that power you were given, what did you use it for, Illyria?"

"I used it as I willed. That is the right of the strong."

"Then you have no claim to superiority. All that power, did you ever use any of it to push limits? Did you ever use it for the betterment of yourself, of your kind? These people, these humans, these ants...they have earned all the power they have. I say that _they _are the superior ones. They are trying all the time to better themselves, to reach higher. Did your kind ever do that, Illyria? That is why I protect them. They will be magnificent, one day."

Illyria said nothing; she had nothing to say. The silence began to stretch, and soon the Blur began to move away again.

"Walk among them, Illyria. Watch them, and I have no doubt that soon you will be able to see what I see in them." And in a gust of wind, he was gone.

Illyria stood on that roof for a long moment more.

"Hmph, I couldn't care less." she said as she departed. She wandered the dark alley of the city, heading back to where the human flying machine was located. _They were not given the ability to fly,_ she reflected. _They achieved it themselves._

She heard then a scream of fear, and before she could think about what she was doing she was running, soon finding herself in an alley where a man stood over a woman on the ground, brandishing a knife. The man turned to face Illyria and pointed the knife at her.

"Run away, girlie, and you won't get hurt."

The dull impact of the man's body colliding with a wall was barely audible over all the sirens and other ambient sounds of the city.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you...," the woman cried before running off. Illyria stood in that alley, looking down its dark path, seeing the illumination of the street lamps at its end.

"Very well," she spoke, knowing that The Blur could hear her, but not intending the statement for him. "I'm curious."

_ FIN_

**Next time on "Hero Talk": **

_The Request_

"Hey there, Clark...," the dark-haired man said, rubbing his hands together in a way Clark could only see as a sign of anxiety.

"Xander,...can I help you with something? Are you okay?"

Xander took a long breath and swallowed several times, like he was working up the courage to say something. Clark's hand clenched in anticipation.

"What's wrong?" he asked again.

"Clark," Xander finally spoke, "I...need a favor...and it's, well...you're not going to like it..."


End file.
